Runaways
by Pongo0614
Summary: After her parent's disapproval of her latest relationship, Clara runs away with John. She reflects on her decision. 12/Clara. T for language.


_So I have been in the Doctor Who Fandom for a while now (I think I started watching it when it rebooted in 2005) but I have never had the urge to write anything for it ..._

 _... Until now._

 _The Whouffaldi Express has hit me and I have so many ideas for stories that I hope to get out to you as soon as possible._

 _If you see on my profile, I have a list of stories that I have ideas for and in what stage they are in._

 _Any ideas would be helpful._

 _I seem to like doing these flashback type of stories (I have done one for Merlin)._

 _Sorry for the long intro and I hope you enjoy._

* * *

 **Runaways**

Clara looked up from her book.

She was pleased with the little place they had managed to get at so short notice.

It wasn't anything special but it was something that they could call home.

The small apartment fitted their needs. A small kitchen with a smaller lounge area with an even smaller bedroom.

At this point in time there were on their balcony. From there they could just about see the top of the Eiffel Tower.

Clara could feel her boyfriend's eyes on her.

She went to turn to look at him.

"Don't move. Don't look at me. Go back to reading your book."

Clara smiled at his voice.

"Clara, go back to how you was. I am almost finished."

She remembered that it was the first thing she fell in love with.

* * *

 **Flashback**

* * *

Clara knew it was a bad idea. It was the worst idea in the world … no the universe.

There was a reason she hadn't gone out in 6 months and she wanted it to be longer.

Clara hadn't taken the death of her boyfriend very well.

For the first few days she was trying everything to try and not let it get to her.

She just walked around aimlessly, waiting for him to come back.

When it hit her, Clara just couldn't stop crying.

There were days which she thought that she could move on and was starting to stop grieving.

And there were others where every little thing reminded her of him, especially when she went back to work.

She had met Danny at Coal Hill, where they were both teachers.

Their relationship hadn't started off well but by the end, Clara knew she was in love with him.

Even though he was a maths teacher, he was very well read.

And that was one of the problems with being an English teacher.

Even one of her most difficult pupils were there consolidating her halfway through a class when they had been discussing To Kill a Mockingbird, Danny's favourite book.

That's the main reason why the other staff members thought it would be best for them all to go out.

* * *

Clara gave a small smile as everyone burst into laughter.

She would admit that she hadn't really been listening. She just wanted to go home.

"My round I think. Does everyone want the same?" Clara said.

Everyone nodded and she slipped from her seat.

She weaved her way through the people and lent on the bar.

It was a busy night and Clara knew that her height wouldn't help her be noticed.

"Yes Sir?" The bartender said to the guy next to her.

"I think the lass was before me." He said.

Clara looked up at him.

He was rather attractive and she wasn't put off by his greying hair.

"Thank you." Clara said, giving him her best smile.

Her eyes quickly dropped to his hands before looking at him.

No ring.

She shook her head.

Why did it matter if he had a ring or not. She wasn't looking for someone else to go out with. Not after the last time.

"Go on then. I haven't got all night." He said, giving her a wide smile.

What topped him off was his accent.

Clara had always been a sucker for an accent, especially a Scottish one.

She quickly ordered and waited for the drinks.

"Guessing you're not here alone." He said.

"What would make you think that?"

"Well I doubt a woman as beautiful as you could have a bad day."

Clara couldn't help but blush.

"John Smith." He said, holding out his hand.

"Clara Oswald." She said, taking it.

She was taken by surprise as he turned their hands over and kissed the back of hers.

"I should be getting back." Clara stuttered out.

She picked up the tray of drinks and returned to the table.

"Here we go." She said, seating back down.

"What took you so long?" One of them asked.

Clara looked up and saw that John was watching her.

"Couldn't get the bartender's attention."

* * *

 **Flashback End**

* * *

Clara looked out the corner of her eye.

She could see her boyfriend lent over his sketch book.

His glasses high on his nose.

She had always loved it when he wore his glasses.

It just made him look sexier.

She could see his eyebrows scrunched together as he concentrated.

Even though she didn't mind that he was a silver fox, it was a bit of a shock to find out actually how old he was.

* * *

 **Flashback**

* * *

The first thing that Clara noticed when she woke up was that she wasn't alone in bed.

She kept her eyes closed as she tried to remember what happened.

She could remember speaking to a man but she didn't remember leaving with him.

Clara opened one of her eyes.

She didn't know what was better. The fact that she brought a stranger back into her own bed or waking up in the stranger's bed.

Clara felt him bring her closer to him and nuzzle his nose into her hair.

She took some deep breaths and tried to calm down.

* * *

"Sorry I don't usually do this." Clara said as she picked up clothes, trying to clean her room slightly.

"Get drunk or bring a strange man home?"

She stopped what she was doing and looked up at him.

John had sat himself up and was leaning against the headboard, the sheet covering his lap.

"Both." She replied, trying not to get distracted. "Do you think anyone saw us leave?"

"Don't you remember it."

"I wouldn't have asked if I did."

John gave her a smile.

"No, you were very keen to make sure we weren't seen."

Clara dragged a hand through her hair.

"If it's any consolation, I don't do this either."

She looked back at him.

His hair was greyer than she thought and his chest was littered with little silver hairs.

"How old are you?"

"How old do you think I am?" John said.

Clara raked her eyes over his body again.

"Late 40s."

John looked at her

"Is that what you think or what you hope?"

Silence fell between them.

John dragged his eyes down her body.

He cleared his throat

"56"

"Shit." Clara breathed.

John raised his eyebrows.

"Sorry, I do …" She started. "I do have a thing for older men."

"I could have guessed that."

Clara sighed "But …"

"But not as old as me."

Clara nodded.

They stared at each other for a while.

"I am sorry if I have offended you." Clara said, trying to make the situation better.

John shook his head.

"We were both drunk. I'll buy you breakfast or coffee." He paused. "Or breakfast and coffee."

Clara gave him a smile.

"That would be nice."

* * *

"Thanks" Clara said, wrapping her fingers around the mug of coffee placed in front of her.

John sat opposite her and put his long fingers in his hair.

"I'm sorry about earlier." She said. "I just panicked. I haven't been with someone in a long time."

John looked up at her.

"Understandable. I shouldn't have pried but I did have a look at the cards while you were changing."

Clara nodded and lent back in her chair.

"I know it's hard. I lost my wife a long time ago."

"They wanted me to get out again."

"So did my friends."

Clara smiled at him.

"So …" She said.

"So what's next?"

Clara dropped her attention to the cup cooling in her hands.

It wasn't like she didn't want to see him again. It was quite the opposite.

The man looked good for his age and Clara would be lying if she said she wasn't attracted to him.

But it had been so long since she had dated.

Clara sat up straighter.

"Well I … I mean if … If you are up for it … If you want … I mean." Clara started.

She took a deep breath before continuing.

"I would like to see you again."

She allowed her eyes to look back up at him.

He had a massive smile on his face.

"I would like to see you again too." John said.

Clara couldn't help but match his smile.

* * *

 **Flashback End**

* * *

"Clara please don't move." John said.

"You said that you were almost done." Clara argued.

"Well I am."

Clara sighed.

"You and time."

"What's that meant to mean?" He said.

She heard him put down his sketch book.

Clara finally turned to look at him.

"Don't you remember?"

John scratched the back of his neck.

"Are you still angry about that?"

* * *

 **Flashback**

* * *

Clara tapped against the table.

She didn't want to think the worse but she had believed that she had been stood up.

John had said that he would meet her at the new Indian restaurant, not far from where she lived, at 6:30.

It was now 6:55.

Clara didn't know how long she was supposed to wait before she thought it was acceptable to leave.

"I am so sorry." John breathed out, his face flushed.

Clara could tell that he had been running.

She waited for him to sit down before she scolded him.

"You said half 6. I have felt like an idiot sitting here."

John looked up at her.

"I know I did. I got caught up at work."

"You should have called."

Clara dropped her eyes to the table.

"I'm sorry. I know it isn't the best impression to give."

"I just feel like an idiot."

Clara looked up as John grabbed her hand.

"You're not the idiot. I am. I will make it up to you. Okay?"

Clara could have laughed by how raised his eyebrows were. They looked as though they were going to jump off his face.

She lent forward and kept their hands joined.

"Okay. So where do you work? What do you do?"

* * *

 **Flashback End**

* * *

Clara smiled.

"Shall I get back into position?"

John nodded at her.

She turned her attention back to the book, looking as though she was reading the words.

Clara was too deep in her thoughts for that.

She knew that book was full of little sketches of her.

It was her book.

John would never allow her to see any of them.

He said that they weren't good enough.

When he told her that he owned a bookshop, she was excited to see it.

Little did she know, it was her favourite.

* * *

 **Flashback**

* * *

"We should meet in your bookshop one time." Clara said as she watched people walk past the window of the coffee shop they were in.

"It's nothing special."

Clara turned to John.

"As well read as you are, I would hope it would be special. Anyway I need a new book."

He wasn't paying attention to her but to the book in front of him.

"Could you go back to looking out the window please?" He said without looking up.

Clara turned back.

"An artist as well. My, my Mr Smith, you have a lot of different talents."

"This is just the hobby."

"Everything you do seems like it's just a hobby. Have you sold anything?"

"A few paintings now and again. I usually just have books like this. I think this one will be your book."

Clara wetted her lips.

"Did your wife have a book?"

She heard John sigh heavily.

"She had a number of books. As I hope you will."

Clara couldn't help but smile.

She was defiantly in this for the long run if he was.

"Okay, I am finished."

She turned to see him putting the book into his bag.

"Don't I get to see."

He looked at her sheepishly.

"It isn't that good."

Clara sighed. She had fallen for a perfectionist.

* * *

"Where are we going?"

John held his arm out and Clara placed her arm around it.

"You wanted to see my bookshop. It's only down the road."

"I didn't mean now."

"Well there is no time like the present."

They walked arm in arm and Clara even lent her head on his shoulder.

"You don't own TARDIS, do you?" Clara said as they came up to the shop. "I love this shop. It is my favourite."

John laughed.

"We could have met a number of different times without knowing."

Clara laughed with him.

"Why TARDIS?"

John shrugged.

"I wanted something that people would remember. It just came to me one day and I just never have thought of anything better."

He held open the door for her.

* * *

"You're the Doctor as well, aren't you?"

John looked up to see what Clara was looking at.

"You have me there."

"I have always loved to own one of your paintings. Every time I have enough money to splash out on one, I can never find one I like."

He stood behind her.

"Well do you like any of these?"

Clara looked at each of them.

"The one on the end."

John looked towards it.

It was one he had done a while ago but never felt like it was good enough to show, let alone sell.

He hadn't been in a good place.

The painting showed a woman in stuck in a metal case, trying to escape and telling herself that she wasn't a monster.

"Really?" He questioned.

Clara turned to him.

He laughed at how scrunched up his eyebrows were.

"Yeah, it just … it says a lot."

John's eyes moved to look at her.

"Like what?"

"That sometimes we can feel as though we are trapped. Sometimes we can be our own worst enemy."

"Right." He said, moving to it and picking it off the wall.

"What are you doing?" Clara said.

"Do you want it?"

Clara paused for a few moments before nodding.

"Then it is a gift from me to you."

* * *

 **Flashback End**

* * *

Clara felt John push his lips into her temple.

"I am going to make some dinner."

She smiled and sighed.

"We can always go back if you want."

She looked up at him.

"No, we will be fine here. I am with you. I don't need anyone else."

"But you do miss them."

"But it is the reason we are here." Clara countered.

Their move to Paris was quick and unplanned.

People didn't understand their relationship. The worst was her father and stepmother.

* * *

 **Flashback**

* * *

"Dad." Clara said as she placed the phone to her ear.

" _Hello darling."_

"Is everything okay?"

" _Yes everything is fine. You?"_

"Yep I am fine."

" _Are you sure?"_

Clara moved about her kitchen and grabbed the kettle.

"Yes I am fine. Why would you say that?"

" _Oh, good. Just Linda had a phone call the other day …"_

Clara flipped on the kettle and closed her eyes.

"From who?"

" _You know Linda's friend, Emily …"_

"Yes Dad I know Emily."

" _Well she had informed us that you have been seeing someone."_

"I thought you would be happy that I have moved on."

Clara grabbed two mugs from the cupboard and placed them on the side.

" _No, we are. Extremely happy that you have managed to … let Danny go."_

"But …" She said, hoping her father would finish the sentence.

" _But she happened to mention that he was an older man."_

"Dad, I am 28. I am allowed to date who ever I like."

" _So he is an older man."_

Clara heard the door click and watched as John came into the kitchen.

She racked her eyes down him.

"Does it matter?"

" _Clara, I just don't want you to waste your life. It took you a while to get over Danny."_

"Who is it?" John mouthed.

"My Dad." Clara mouthed back.

"You're a fine one to talk."

" _What is that meant to mean?"_

"How long did it take you to get over mum's death?"

" _That's different."_

"How?"

" _Well, your mother and I grew up together. How much older is he?"_

Clara looked back to John.

"Age is just a number, isn't it? It is how old you feel inside that counts."

" _Clara how old is he?"_

"Dad does it matter?"

" _Yes it does."_

Clara looked up at John and sighed.

"We have just celebrated John's 57th Birthday."

She heard her dad chocking.

" _Christ Clara."_

"What?" She said, trying to make it sound innocent.

" _He is older than me."_

John kissed her forehead before moving to make the tea.

" _They already say we have problems."_

"What problems do we have?"

" _Your hatred for Linda."_

"That is totally plausible. I didn't need another mother and she came in and tried to take over the place. Anyway when did you start to care about what people thought?"

" _Since we became the talk of the neighbourhood."_

"I am sorry that my boyfriend couldn't cross the road properly." Clara shouted in her anger.

" _Clara you know I didn't mean it like that."_

Clara jumped slightly when John put his hand on her shoulder.

"Tea?" He said.

" _Wait is he there with you now? When did you open the door? Clara does he have a key to your flat?"_

Clara smiled at John and took the mug he was holding out to her.

"Yes he is with me now and yes he has a key. You have a key to my flat."

" _That is different."_

"How?"

" _I am your father. He just a just a random stranger."_

"Yes just a random stranger that I have been dating for 6 months and I feel as though I have known him my whole life."

" _Clara I don't like this one bit."_

"And that is your problem."

" _My problem?"_

Clara took a sip of her tea.

"You have already judged him before you have even met him. And don't tell me that you are just looking out for me."

" _I do worry about you."_

"Dad, as I have already said once, I am 28. I know what I am doing."

" _I still worry."_

Clara sighed.

"I know you do but I do love him and he loves me."

" _I just don't like it."_

"Just meet him. He is a good guy."

" _I don't know."_

Clara smiled at the hesitation in his voice.

"Look just think about it. The holidays start in two weeks' time. Maybe we could come up to Blackpool."

" _Yeah, maybe."_

"Bye Dad."

" _Bye."_

Clara sighed as she pressed the hang up button.

"I really hate her." She said as she sat down next to John on the sofa.

"Who?" He said.

"Linda. She has always stuck her nose in where it isn't wanted. Her friend Emily told her about us."

"He has kinder got a point."

Clara looked up at him.

"Well if I had a daughter then I would be a bit upset if she starting going out with someone 30 years older than them."

"But you would give the guy a chance."

"Probably, defiantly if he made her happy."

Clara lent up and kissed him.

* * *

Clara unlocked the door and walked through it, kicking the door closed behind her.

She threw down her bag and put the keys on the table next to the door.

"Hey, I'm home." She said as she walked down the hallway.

"Clara." John said, running down the hallway.

He looked a little flustered.

"What's up?"

John scratched the back of his head.

"Your dad showed up and …"

Clara didn't hear anything else that John said as she stormed past him.

"You have no right showing up like this."

"You are making a mistake." Linda said. "Your father and I are worried about you."

"What mistake?"

"Well have you seen him?"

"I am not a boyfriend error." John said behind her.

Clara couldn't help but smile at his phasing.

"That is the best way to put it." Linda said, rolling her eyes.

She thought it was best just to try and ignore Linda.

"Dad, will you give him a chance?"

Dave's eyes flipped between his daughter and her boyfriend.

"He does look good for his age." He finally said to Linda.

Clara looked up at John and smiled.

"Dave he is older than you."

"Does that particularly matter?"

Linda's eyes went wide.

"They all think that we have problems without this as well."

"Stuff them." Clara said.

Linda turned to her.

"Well we always seem to the talk of the neighbourhood."

"As I said stuff them. It doesn't matter what they think."

"You don't have to live with them."

Clara sighed.

"It was one of the reasons I moved so far away." She muttered.

"Oh and I was the other reason."

Clara didn't want to argue with her.

"So we don't just have the issue with me." Linda said. "Now it looks like you have 'daddy issues' as well."

"Any issues I have with my dad are between me and him."

"She does have a point." Dave said.

Clara turned to her father.

"Why should I accept your relationship when you have never accepted mine?"

"This is totally different."

"How?" Dave said.

"John is here as my boyfriend, not trying to take over my role." She gestured towards Linda. "She came in and tried to take over the household. I had everything under control. She was trying to be the mother I didn't need."

"You were 16, you need stability."

"So you married the first woman that you thought would do that?" Clara said, bluntly.

Clara felt John put his hand on her shoulder.

"If it is anything, Clara has made me the happiest I have been in 25 years."

* * *

 **Flashback End**

* * *

"You are never done with someone when they still can make you angry."

Clara looked up at John.

"Danny once said that to me."

"I am starting to like Danny more and more." John said as he ducked through the window.

After what happened with her father, Clara started to notice everyone else looking at them weirdly.

They needed to get out of there.

They needed to get to a place where no one knew them, where no one would ask any questions.

Clara had always said that she wished to travel and John was trying to make it a reality.

They were going to stay in France for a while then move on, slowly making their way across Europe, finding work where they could.

She looked out at the setting sun.

Clara didn't know if they were making the right decision but she knew that they had to get away.

This was the start of their new chapter, together.


End file.
